Ohio Green Party members accompany Code Pink on trip to celebrate the re-establishment of U.S. – Cuba diplomatic relations

Contact:
Bob Fitrakis, OGP Co-Chair 614-374-2380Ohio Green Party Co-Chair Bob Fitrakis and Central Committee member Suzanne Patzer represented the Ohio Green Party during the Code Pink-led delegation to Cuba to acknowledge the thaw in United States/Cuba relations.

The trip took place from February 8-15 and the group had the opportunity to meet with Cuban government officials, interact with medical professionals who had been fighting the African Ebola outbreak and talk with Cuban citizens about cultural, economic, environmental and health issues.

They also met with Fernando Gonzalez, one of the Cuban Five. Three of the members were recently released from incarceration in the United States to seal the deal between President Obama and Cuba.

“While we congratulate President Obama for re-establishing diplomatic relations with Cuba, there is still much to do. We need to take Cuba off the state-sponsored “terrorist list” and we need to lift the blockade. If we can trade with Communist China and Vietnam, a country we fought a war with, we should be able to trade openly with our neighbor Cuba,” said Fitrakis.

Patzer stated, “We have much to learn from the Cuban people who have gone through more than 50 years of a U.S. embargo. I was very impressed with their optimistic spirit and dedication to their cooperative societal values. We in the U.S. can learn from their battle against GMOs and their nationwide efforts to embrace organic farming.”

The Ohio Green Party is proud that two of our leadership group took part in this historic visit.